The Sunday after Christmas, we drove from my mom and dad’s in west Michigan back home to celebrate with Marc’s family. We left pretty early and stopped at our favorite coffee shop Lemonjello’s. We ordered lattes and some freshly made energy bars. We loved the chewy texture and the hearty ingredients that tasted great and kept us full until lunch.

After that first bite, I wanted to try making my own. I loaded these vegan, no-bake bars with all of our favorite things. There’s peanut butter, sliced almonds, cacao nibs, hemp seeds and coconut. They’re quick and easy to make, too. You’ll appreciate having these guys around the next time you’re hungry.

Vegan Peanut Butter Almond Cacao Nib Granola Bars

If you keep old-fashioned oats on-hand like I do, you can turn them into quick-cooking oats by pulsing briefly in a food processor. Make sure the oats are gluten-free if you need these gf. You can use unsweetened or lightly sweetened crisp brown rice cereal. If you don’t mind that these aren’t vegan, you can sub in honey for the brown rice syrup.

Ingredients

1 cup quick-cooking oats

1 cup crisp brown rice cereal

1 cup sliced almonds

1/3 cup unsweetened coconut chips or flakes

1/3 cup raw cacao nibs

2 tablespoons hemp seeds

1 cup creamy natural peanut butter

1/2 cup brown rice syrup

1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon sea salt (use 1/2 teaspoon if your pb is unsalted)

Instructions

Line an 8 inch square baking pan with parchment paper cut to fit, one strip in each direction.

In a large mixing bowl, combine oats, cereal, almonds and cacao nibs. In a small bowl or 2-cup measuring cup combine peanut butter, brown rice syrup, vanilla extract, cinnamon and sea salt. Mix well. If peanut butter is lumpy, you can heat the mixture on the stovetop or in the microwave on low and cool to room temp before adding to the cereal. Add liquid mixture to the dry mixture and mix well with a wooden spoon.

Transfer to the prepared baking pan and spread out mixture evenly. Use a metal measuring cup or drinking glass with flat base covered in plastic wrap to press the mixture evenly into the pan. Cover baking pan and refrigerate for at least 2 hours or overnight. Use a sharp knife to cut into 12 bars. Wrap in plastic wrap or parchment and store in fridge for chewy texture or freezer for a firmer texture.

Recipe from Nicole Dula at http://www.dulanotes.com/vegan-peanut-butter-cacao-nib-granola-bars/

These look like a great snack to have around for when the munchies hit! I love that the ingredients are all ones that I recognize and can pronounce…so unlike the prepackaged grocery store ones! Nom nom nom…

HOLLAND is on our must do quick weekend trips this spring/summer. It’s beachy, right? I’ve made a note of that coffee shop. Thank you. Every place we adventure gets mandatory stops at breweries, coffee houses and open spaces with outdoor art. No matter what. We let the rest of a trip just kind of a happen in between those three stops.

Also, can’t wait to make these no-bake granola bars. Can’t ever have enough of those! xo

I totally appreciate this! I get so excited when I see housemade granola bars at coffee shops. Also I’ve had just about a 1/3 cup of cacao nibs in the fridge for forever and now I know what to make with them.